(16 Feb 2017) LEAD-IN:
A bereaved family says the Iraqi government should provide more support for the families of soldiers killed in action.
Hundreds of troops are estimated to have died in the fight for Mosul so far, but the government does not release official casualty reports - a policy that that many Iraqis view as disrespectful of their sacrifice.
STORY-LINE:
A grief-stricken family gather to pay their respects to a loved one lost to war.
Major Hamza Finjan's relatives mourn at his graveside - two months after his death in Mosul fighting the Islamic State group (IS).
Early on the morning of 12 December 2016, Finjan led a raid on a small house in eastern Mosul being used as an IS base.
Knowing the task would be dangerous, he told his personal bodyguards and driver to stay behind.
Finjan had fought in Mosul before alongside US forces in 2008 and knew how to clear a room and secure a perimeter, but the increasingly difficult missions he was being given in Mosul were testing his many years of training and experience.
As Finjan's men moved into the eastern Mosul house, IS fighters surrounded them using a network of tunnels connecting the buildings to a nearby mosque.
Finjan called for support, but none came and within two hours he was dead along with four other soldiers.
For his parents, saying goodbye to a beloved son is all too familiar.
Finjan's older brother, a police officer, was killed when a car bomb exploded at a checkpoint he was guarding.
His mother says: "He (Hamza) was very kind and nice to his family, especially after the death of our elder son, Amar. He (Hamza) was like a father and brother to all of us. His death is a great loss to us."
The Iraqi government does not release official casualty reports.
Iraqi commanders on the ground blame the high casualty rates on the nature of the fight. Mosul is a large, dense urban area and the operation to retake the city is larger in scale than any conventional military fight since the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq.
But Finjan's relatives blame poor planning of the Mosul operation for the death of their son and say the government's practice of not releasing military casualty information dishonours their family's sacrifice.
Finjan's father Finjan Mathi says: "Major Hamza lived and died serving his country in high-risk areas."
"Since the day of his death, we have received only one visit from officials, no attention has been given to his family to lessen their suffering. They (the government) should pay more attention via media or other official channels. There is no support at all."
Finjan Mathi says he has attended more than 25 funerals since the Mosul operation began, in addition to that of his son.
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